Wave of student activism spreads at Cornell after rape allegations

Wave of student activism spreads at Cornell after rape allegations Cornell campus vandalized as frustration boils over.

Key points

• Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten confirmed last month his office would reopen the case.
• 3, Cornell University President Michael Kotlikoff called the assault allegations "deeply disturbing" and "a defining moment" in Cornell's history.
• When someone broke a glass door at a university building and spray-painted its walls, declaring "Smash the Patriarchy, " according to the student newspaper, The Cornell Daily Sun, 5.
• "We are known as a rape school, but we don't have to be, " Saya Taylor, an organizer with Students for a Democratic Cornell, informed the crowd.
• The lawsuit names seven then-fraternity members, Cornell University, the Chi Phi fraternity, and others.

Cornell University students are gathering to protest, criticizing their school's handling of sexual assault cases.

ITHACA, NY – Cornell University students who are critical of their school's handling of sexual assault cases are holding a string of protests this week and calling on the university to create changes, including by providing trauma-informed training for campus police.

As the sun set on Oct. 5, students, professors and others filled an outdoor plaza on campus. Others lined nearby walkways and stood atop a hill overlooking where protesters spoke, shading their eyes to see through the glare. Some wore purple ribbons.

They carried signs declaring, "We want sentences, not essays, " or asking, "How many more?" They yelled "shame" at mentions of the university's handling of sexual assault cases. And they chanted "No justice, no peace."

"We are known as a rape school, but we don't have to be, " Saya Taylor, an organizer with Students for a Democratic Cornell, informed the crowd. "We can be the students that lead a nationwide reform movement."

Frustration boiled over here early on Oct. When someone broke a glass door at a university building and spray-painted its walls, declaring "Smash the Patriarchy, " according to the student newspaper, The Cornell Daily Sun, 5. By the afternoon, the spray paint had been washed away, and the broken door had been boarded up.

Notably, the vandalism followed the filing of a Sept. 16 lawsuit by a young woman known anonymously as Jane Doe. It alleges she was gang-raped on Oct. 19, 2024, by members of Cornell's Chi Phi fraternity while being too intoxicated to consent and after being pressured into taking ketamine.

Notably, the lawsuit names seven then-fraternity members, Cornell University, the Chi Phi fraternity, and others. All seven fraternity members denied the allegations during the university's investigation.

Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten confirmed last month his office would reopen the case. Gov. Kathy Hochul appointed New York State Attorney General Letitia James as a special prosecutor who will investigate the allegations.

More than 1, 200 incidents of sexual assault, dating and domestic violence and stalking were documented to Cornell's Title IX office from 2018 through 2024, according to a USA TODAY analysis of data the school noted to New York state.

In a video statement published Oct. 3, Cornell University President Michael Kotlikoff called the assault allegations "deeply disturbing" and "a defining moment" in Cornell's history. He remarked Cornell's Board of Trustees will shortly announce an independent review by an outside law firm into the university's handling of the 2024 case.

He additionally stated the university planned to evaluate the role of Greek organizations on campus.

Meanwhile, thousands of Cornell students participated in the campus rally on Oct. 5, organized by more than 20 student organizations. Some demonstrators who indicated up wore name tags identifying themselves as "Jane Doe."

"It's really clear in all of the responses that the administrators have made is that they are not treating this as an endemic issue, " remarked Jack Huber of Indianapolis, 19, a sophomore and a member of Students for a Democratic Cornell. It assisted organize the protest.

More related events have been planned for the coming days. The university's Planned Parenthood Generation Action chapter and its Feminist, Gender, & Sexuality Studies Program have planned an Oct. 6 town hall regarding sexual violence on campus.

"Come ready to build what comes next, " they remarked in a social media post advertising the event.

On Wednesday, Oct. 7, the Cornell NAACP chapter is organizing an economic boycott and a seven-hour sit-in at one of the campus dining halls.

"We did not come here just to be angry for an afternoon and return to business as usual tomorrow, " Athena Holloway a member of the school's NAACP chapter informed those gathered for the Oct. 5 protest. "Today is not the end of this movement." Share your feedback to support improve our site!

For now, wave of student activism spreads at Cornell after rape allegations remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.